


A Moment Outside of Time

by merlinian



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Gen, M/M, Magic Revealed, early season 2
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-09-25
Updated: 2016-10-07
Packaged: 2018-08-17 04:36:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,529
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8130608
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/merlinian/pseuds/merlinian
Summary: Merlin causes a little girl to be accused of sorceryMerlin reveals his magic to save the girl.





	1. Chapter 1

“Good morning, Merlin!”  
Merlin managed to only drop an apple from his tray of fruits he was bringing for Arthur’s breakfast. “Wh- good morning, sire! This is… unusual!”  


“You can have that one.” Arthur snickered, pointing to the red apple rolling underneath his bed.  


Merlin grabbed for the apple because he was, in fact, hungry. “Thanks! …Are you feeling okay?” Merlin was both amused and suspicious. First of all, Arthur was _laughing_. His bed was made, he was clothed, and most surprising he was _working_. Sitting at his desk, actually reading reports from his father.  


“Just fantastic, Merlin! I’ve got good news. You and I are going hunting over the weekend!” Arthur stood up and made his way to his breakfast platter. With a mouthful of food he rambled on, “Nicest weather we’ve had in a long while. There haven’t been any attacks in weeks, so father said now would be a great time for a hunt. We’ll leave tomorrow at dawn. Just us. You can have the rest of the day to help Gaius before your absence.”  


Merlin blinked a few times in shock, trying to process the change of events and seeing his Prince so unusually chipper. “Are you sure you can manage without me the rest of the day?”  


“I’ve managed pretty well without you so far today, if you hadn’t noticed.”  


“Yes… it appears you have.”  


“Oh Merlin.” There he goes again, _laughing_. His annoying, arrogant, strong, beautiful laugh. “Doesn’t mean I don’t appreciate the help any other day.” Merlin’s jaw slacked while Arthur made his way back to his desk. “Meet me at the stables at dawn.” He said while waving his hand dismissively.  


Merlin damn near scurried out of Arthur’s chambers. 

 

 

Merlin couldn’t help but smile as he walked the stoned streets of the lower town, collecting herbs and other ingredients for Gaius. Spring was blooming, bringing warmth, food, and good spirits all around. Maybe his interaction with Arthur wasn’t so strange. It had been over a year now since Merlin arrived in Camelot after all. He liked to think him and Arthur were on more friendly terms as of late.  


_Home._ Merlin paused, startled at his own thoughts. He looked at his surroundings, admiring the castle in the background. _Yes, this is home now._  


The thought comforted him. He missed his mother, of course, but now he had a father figure in Gaius. He had friends now; Lancelot, Gwen, Morgana, maybe even Arthur. He even could name most of the commoners selling throughout the lower town.  


“Merlin! Merlin!” Tiny hands grabbed at his own, pulling him from his reverie.  


“Oh, my little Maysie!  


Maysie squealed with delight as Merlin picked her up and sat her on his hip. “Hey, I’m four now!”  


“Now that can’t be right!” Maysie just giggled as Merlin booped her nose and turned toward her mother’s booth. “Hi, Sarah.”  
Sarah was the first person he ever spoke to upon arriving in Camelot, buying a red neckerchief to protect him from the wind that day. It was still hard for Merlin to imagine this quiet young lady to be raising a child completely alone. Today she was wearing a soft yellow dress, her long dark hair wrapped in a spiral on top of her head, looking anything but common.  


“Hi, Merlin. Maysie has been waiting for you to stop by all week.” Sarah smiled sweetly.  


“Arthur finally gave me a day off, can you believe it?”  


“Mommy, I want to see Prince Arthur!”  


Sarah chuckled, “You’ve seen him walk by several times, my sweet.”  


“Nooooo, I want to hug him!”  


Merlin really laughed at that, imagining Arthur’s face if Maysie were to ambush him with a hug. “Have you been up to the castle before, Maysie?”  


“Noooo!” Maysie squealed as Sarah shook her head no.  


“Can I show her the gardens, Sarah?”  


“That won’t be a problem?”  


“Of course not!” Merlin placed the girl back on solid ground and took hold of her hand, and Sarah took his basket of ingredients for safe keeping until their return. “Oh, before I forget the reason I was walking by in the first place!” Merlin reached into his pocket with his free hand, grabbing a few coins and handing them to Sarah. “I need a few more of those red neckerchiefs. I don’t go a day without this one.”  


“Oh Merlin, you’re too good to us.” Sarah blushed, reaching up and grabbing two of the red cloths hanging above her head.  


Merlin noticed a faded gold neckerchief. _That would look perfect on Arthur._ “Actually, make it a red one, and a gold one.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It appears i am very bad at summaries.

“Now, we’re just going to the gardens, Maysie. We won’t see Arthur today, he’s too busy inside the castle.” The child was pulling Merlin along behind her, nearly running up the hill toward the citadel.

“I know that, silly!”

They stopped at the entrance to the gardens, Maysie’s mouth open and eyes shining. “It’s so pretty!”

Merlin always loved to spend time in this garden. He didn’t nearly enough, especially since the winter months. The girl looked up at him, asking with just her expression if she could explore. Merlin nodded, and moved to sit on a bench near the castle walls overlooking the lawn. The sight of her laughing and running up and down the rows of hedges, with the sun warming him from the inside, brought Merlin a sense of peace he couldn’t remember ever feeling so strongly before. He relaxed, sighing dreamily. He could feel his magic bubbling within him, but it felt nice. 

He glanced around quickly, and with no one in sight, he began allowing the roses to come to full bloom, following Maysie as she brushed her hands across the bushes. Merlin smiled, pleased with himself. He had never grown flowers so easily, without speaking an enchantment. If she was startled by the sudden appearance of a full garden, she didn’t let on. Children are innately naïve and pure of heart, always seeing the world in wonderment. She immediately picked a rose from the bush, sniffing it and shaking her head in disgust. After several minutes, Maysie joined Merlin on the bench. 

“Why do people say to stop and smell the roses?” 

“You don’t like the way they smell?” Merlin laughed. 

“No. They smell like dirt.” She pouted.

“Did you know that before today?”

“No.” Maysie wrinkled her eyebrows, thinking.

“They say to smell the roses, not because they smell as pretty as they look, but that you should simply take time to appreciate them. Plants are living things that breathe oxygen into our air and feed our planet. It’s important to admire them up close as well as from afar.”

“Oh.” She seemed deep in thought for a moment, then yawned.

“C’mon. Grab a few roses for your dear mother. I need to finish gathering a few things for Gaius, but I’m very happy we came here so you could smell the roses.” Maysie smiled and took his hand, letting Merlin lead her back to the hustle and bustle of the lower town. 

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

The next morning found Merlin well rested, for once. He rose before the sun started to peak over the horizon, and immediately headed for the stables. For the first time since he started working for Arthur, he was somewhat excited for a hunting trip. He couldn’t place exactly why, but his emotion was definitely excitement. Maybe it was because he wouldn’t have to worry about the other knights. They were always whining and never left enough food for Merlin to eat. Maybe he was excited to spend time with Arthur, without the stoned walls and stone faced people. He tried not to over analyze his own thoughts, as he so often did. It was perfectly normal to look forward to a trip with a man who constantly berated him, thank you very much. 

At first light, Merlin began to pace anxiously around the perimeter of the stables. Another hour, and his anxiety turned to anger. 

“Spoiled cabbage head.” Merlin grumbled to himself, walking the castle corridors. Of course Arthur overslept. Merlin thought maybe, just maybe, Arthur was starting to grow up. Fat chance. He hadn’t seen or heard anything from the Prince after their morning yesterday. For all Merlin knew, Arthur had _died_ without Merlin there to look after him. _No._ Merlin sobered a little at his own thoughts, panic starting to set in. He knew how much Arthur was looking forward to this trip, he wouldn’t have overslept _this_ long. 

He barged into Arthur’s chambers, running smack into his friend Guinevere.

“Oh, Merlin I’m so sorry!” Gwen blushed, picking up the linens she had dropped.

“I’m the one who barged in here, Gwen.” Said Merlin, bending down to grab the rest of the sheets. “Where’s Arthur?”

“You don’t know? He’s in the council room with Uther. I thought you were with him, that’s why I’m in here to begin with.” 

“What’s going on?” 

“Oh Merlin, it’s absolutely awful.” Gwen sighed as she set down the basket of linens on Arthur’s bed. Merlin stared expectantly, and Gwen sighed again. “They’ve arrested a poor girl for sorcery.” She paused at Merlin’s audible gasp. “She’s only four years of age, but a knight saw her enchant the entire royal gardens into a full bloom.” Merlin went weak at the knees. Gwen steadied him and helped him into a chair. 

“No.” Merlin whispered, eyes frantic. 

“They stole her in the night. Uther has already sentenced her to death. Arthur has been in council arguing with the King for at least two hours now.” She said quietly. 

“Arthur is arguing the sentence?”

“Of course, Merlin! She’s just a child!”

“Oh God. Oh no. No, no, no this cannot be happening.” Merlin stood up quickly, nearly tripping over his chair. He began pacing around Arthur’s room. 

“The poor mother has been in hysterics. It’s absolutely aw-“

“Sarah.” Merlin stopped.

“How did you-?”

“I have to fix this.” Merlin made his way to the door, and then turned back toward Gwen. “Where is the mother?”

“Last I heard a few knights escorted her back to her home but-“

“Thank you Guinevere, for telling me this. I’ll fix it.” Merlin ran out of Arthur’s chambers, leaving a concerned Gwen staring at the back of the door. 


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry the chapters are still so short! It's been a crazy month. Thanks for reading!! <3

Merlin ran for a few minutes before he stopped suddenly. He reached for the wall for support, gasping for air. He had to remind himself to breathe and stay rational. Maybe running to Sarah first was not the best course of action. He needed to make sure Maysie was okay, he needed to talk to Gaius, he needed to get more information, he needed to talk to Arthur.

He decided to turn around and head back toward the council room. He would sneak in like nothing was the matter, like it was just a normal day in Camelot. This _is_ a normal day in Camelot. 

Merlin quietly opened the doors of the court and slid inside. Everyone glanced in Merlin’s direction and immediately focused their attention back on Uther. Arthur held Merlin’s gaze and mouthed _“Thank God.”_

Uther laughed, not noticing Merlin’s crazed expression or his son’s shoulders relaxing. “It’s about time your lazy servant show up for work, Arthur.”

“He was under instructions to wait for me at the stables this morning, Father.” Arthur snapped, as Merlin bowed his head in a slight nod and moved to stand at Arthur’s side.

“Ah, that’s right, your hunting trip. I don’t see any reason for you to stay here, we have the situation under control.”

“Thank you, Father.” Arthur gripped Merlin’s arm and made for the door. 

“Arthur-“ Merlin bit through his teeth. Arthur shushed him and walked a bit faster.

Once inside the safety of Arthur’s chambers, he finally released his tight hold of Merlin’s arm. 

“Arthur, we can’t leave!” Merlin exclaimed as he readjusted his tunic, rubbing some feeling back into his arm.

“I know that, _Mer_ lin...”

“You’re…“

“I just needed to get out of there, I was dangerously close to getting violent.” 

“Arthur, what happened? All I know is that a little girl is arrested for sorcery.” 

“There isn’t time.”

“Arthur I can’t help if I don’t know everything.”

“How do you expect to help at all?”

Merlin pretended he wasn’t hurt by that question. “Why did you drag me in here, _sire_. What’s your plan, hmm?” 

“You’re right, I’m sorry, I’m panicking.” Arthur stopped pacing and sat behind his desk, fiddling with the feather of a quill. 

“I’m _right_? You’re _sorry_? Are you sure you’re feeling okay?” Merlin began angrily, but by the end of the sentence his scowl was slipping into a grin. The boys stared at each other for a moment and then both broke into easy laughter.

“Merlin I’m not a total prat, you know!”

“Yeah if you say so, dollop-head.” Merlin rolled his eyes, smiling. “But seriously, what’s going on?” Merlin tried to keep a straight face, crossing his arms and tapping his toe impatiently. It was easy to fall into this comfortable banter with Arthur, but there was no time to waste. 

“Sir Diggle was on guard on the east tower yesterday afternoon. He reports that a little girl was playing in the garden alone, and the next thing he knew, the garden was in full bloom. Sure enough, the garden is full grown, and plenty of councilmen saw the garden just yesterday, only budding.”

“So… A child is going to die for growing flowers?” 

“I know. It’s ridiculous, I know. They woke me only after they arrested her." 

“Was there a trial?” 

“No need, Merlin. The girl confessed.” Arthur sighed.

“Wait, what?” Merlin leaned forward, placing his palms down onto the desk. 

“She didn’t seem too confident in her abilities, only said that she was playing in the garden and suddenly roses appeared. I think she’s completely harmless. Father says that if we let her live, we will have to kill her eventually, and doesn’t want to risk magic corrupting her. He thinks if we let this slide, other sorcerers will think we’ve gone soft. I can’t seem to convince anyone to stop this monstrosity. She was so scared Merlin, she is just a child.” Arthur’s lips started to tremble. He looked down at his hands, trying to distract himself before tears could fall. Merlin looked away in fear of getting emotional in front of his Prince, something that happened all too often. He straightened, and began pacing around the room. He was scared and confused, but a small part of him was elated at just how against this sentence Arthur seemed to be. Maybe hope was not lost on him, after all. 

“Arthur!” Sudden banging on the door broke the silence. Merlin scrambled to the door and opened it, catching Gwen as she stumbled into the room. “Arthur, they’re setting the pyre now. It’s happening tonight!” 

Arthur jumped from his chair. “Merlin, stay here, I’ll fix this.” He reached for Guinevere’s hands on the way out. “Thank you.”

Gwen shook her head in a laugh as the door closed behind Arthur. “You sure have rubbed off on him, Merlin.”


End file.
